


Beyond Bitter Light

by Zairafuana



Category: Jericho (US 2006), The Evil Gene (2015)
Genre: Dana's a bitch, Death, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, lots of blood, slight gore, stressed out characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-20
Updated: 2019-02-20
Packaged: 2019-10-31 21:05:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17856947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zairafuana/pseuds/Zairafuana
Summary: With Jericho running low on medical supplies in the middle of winter, Bill gets dragged along on Jake and Stanley’s scavenger party. Their search leads them to a science facility where Bill meets a new friend that may just inspire Bill’s will to live in this newly destroyed world.





	Beyond Bitter Light

**Author's Note:**

> I AM FINALLY DONE WITH THIS FRIGGIN' AWFUL STORY!
> 
> I apologize for yelling but I have had the worst time with this story. I honestly still don't like it. It feels boring and flat. I apologize for making you all suffer through it. Enjoy! ^^
> 
> On the upside, Bill is an adorable sweetheart the entire time!
> 
> A special thanks to calamitychaos, warlockwriter, and snips-snails-skittles over on Tumblr for all the art!
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing

Things were not really looking up for Jericho.

Bill frowned as he leaned on the counter beside Jake Green. His gaze shifted to his friend, concerned. On the other side of Jake stood Stanley. The farmer had just brought in a pathetically small haul of food before checking in with his friends.

“Things aren’t lookin’ good, Jake.” Bill whispered nervously. He shifted uneasily as he looked at the inventory sheet in Jake’s hand. Their medical supplies were dangerously low. Just looking at it on paper made the deputy extremely anxious.

It was bad enough that the food was in low supply. The bellies of the entire town were empty. That meant that most immune systems were currently weak. This meant that without medical supplies they were going to lose people to simple illnesses.

Bill looked at his two friends. They had always been symbols of strength to him. He had known them since they were all young teenagers. He would need their encouragement here to make it through.

In secret, Emily called them the Guardian Trio.

“I know, Bill.” Jake sighed softly and gave his friend a weak smile. Jake had to stay strong for his friends. He was the only one of the trio that had actually been out in the world. He knew how truly cruel life could be. He refused to let that bitter truth corrupt his dearest friends, “But we’re going to be okay. I’m sure there’s a town around here with supplies. We just need to set up a search party to look for things.”

“But, Jake, what about Ravenwood?” Bill urged fearfully, “They’ll have raided them all by now.”

“Not necessarily.” Jake replied softly, glaring at the inventory sheet, “There has to be some places that they couldn’t find. There must still be someplace.”

“How about old hunting haunts?” Stanley asked softly, trying desperately to think up a solution. 

Jake could only shake his head and sigh, “No. There’s no way that those weren’t cleaned out. No hunting spot is that secure because there’s always a friend of a friend who has gone hunting with the owner.”

The trio’s shoulders drooped and their eyes slipped closed. They were struggling to find the answer. They were all exhausted and uneasy, but they needed to figure this out. They were the only ones who could.

“Uh, uhm? Ex, excuse me?” The timid voice drew their attention. The trio looked up and over at the speaker. It was a young woman, probably in her late teens, who was one of the refugees.

“Yes?” Stanley asked softly, giving her one of his sweet smiles. The expression seemed to cut through the despair and unease in the atmosphere of the room. It seemed to help the girl relax enough to speak.

“I, I may know of a place for supplies.” She replied slowly, still a bit nervous. Still, her words made Jake and his exhausted attention span perk up. He straightened up and shifted his gaze to her.

It was a bit intimidating to have him staring at her but she tried to focus anyway. She knew that this was the right person to go to when you had useful information for the town’s survival. Gray may be the mayor now but all the citizens and refugees knew that the Green family held all the power in town.

“You know of someplace?” Jack asked softly, trying not to sound too excited or desperate. He truly hoped this was a lead. They were in vital need of all types of supplies, “Where is it?”

“A, a small town not too far southeast from here. It’s off a side road before you hit one of the major cities.” The young woman started. She slowly began to relax, making it easier to speak. The three of the men were a lot less scary than they seemed once she was actually up close, “It, it was a research facility that I made a delivery to once. I worked, I worked for a company that delivered food supplies in bulk to businesses.”

This had Jake’s full attention immediately. He stepped a bit closer and gently laid a hand on her shoulder. He looked at her earnestly, “What makes you think that this place wasn’t cleaned out already, Ms. -!? Um?” He stumbled verbally, realizing he didn’t know her name.

“Zella. Zella Stenson.” She supplied simply before hurriedly answering his original question, “It was like super top secret. Even the location of it was top secret! It was extremely hard to find without directions. I don’t think anyone could find it if they didn’t already know where it was. I’m positive that it must still have supplies left.” 

She looked at him confidently. She smiled brightly, she was sure this would work. If they could find and get those supplies then they would be better set. Medical supplies in the med center meant peace in the town.

“Thank you, Zella.” Jake squeezed her shoulder gently before pulling away. He turned to Stanley and Bill, “Alright, we need to organize a ranger team to go check this out. If Gray doesn’t give us authorization then we’ll make the trip ourselves. I’m not putting this town at risk because Gray’s afraid to lead.”

Bill and Stanley straightened up as they listened to Jake. They nodded and moved to obey Jake’s command. They needed to get things ready while Jake met up with Gray as he had the most influence over the man.

As Bill headed for the sheriff's station to grab some weapons, he swallowed nervously. He was worried, unsettled. He had a bad feeling that Gray was going to say no and that would end up with Bill leaving town with Jake and Stanley.

Bill loved both of his friends but he hated the idea of leaving with them. The world outside of Jericho terrified him. It was filled with memories of pain, of being tied up and shoved into the trunk of his own squad car. 

He was worried that he would forget how to function out there? What if he got one of his friends hurt or killed!?

Bill wasn’t sure that he could live with such a horrific mistake if he made it. Still, how could he let his friends go alone? They needed someone to watch their back. Eric was busy with stuff in town, he couldn’t do it. Jimmy had a family to watch out for and Emily had to help with the kids.

This left Bill with the task of going with his friends.

As scared as he was, Bill felt like this was the correct choice. He would follow Jake and Stanley as far as they let him. The trio didn’t always see eye to eye but they had to stick together despite that.

His mind made up, Bill settled into a light jog to the sheriff’s station. He burst through the door, greeting Jimmy and a few other rangers. He didn’t have time for pleasantries. He needed to pick weapons that best fit him and his friends as they were the obvious choice to go. 

His service pistol at his hip already, Bill grabbed an assault rifle for Jake and two shotguns for himself and Stanley.

~*~z~*~

Bill had been right. 

Gray had denied their request to send out rangers to the facility. But Jake had refused to take no for an answer when it came to the safety of his town. He wasn’t going to let an inexperienced mayor kill citizens from stupidity. So, he took matters into his own hands.

Jake, Stanley, and Bill were on the backroads out from Jericho. The three were determined to make this run and return as quickly as possible. No one was dying on their watch. Jake had made that vow.

Bill sat in the middle seat of Stanley’s pick up. He yawned tiredly and snuggled against Stanley’s side. The farmer had a protective arm wrapped around the little deputy. Over Bill’s head, Stanley and Jake shared a tender look. They knew what leaving Jericho’s city limits meant to Bill.

Stanley held Bill closer to his side and Jake stepped on the gas.

Bill tried to keep his mind off the memories of the attack from those convicts. He busied himself by playing with the buttons on Stanley’s winter coat. It helped to keep his mind from wandering where it shouldn’t. 

He found himself glad that they were on this back road, less likely to be attacked by road gangs. It was a blessing that Stanley had actually done a livestock trade before in the town they were heading to. This meant that the farmer knew the shortest way to the other town. Bill could see the town’s limits in the distance.

“So, what’s the plan?” Bill asked softly, raising his head a bit to look over the dash better.

“Simple.” Jake stated matter-of-factly, “Find the facility. Break-in. Do a quick check for survivors. Then get the supplies and get the hell out of dodge.”

Bill found he couldn’t argue with that plan.

He sat up a bit straighter and gazed out the window. He felt uneasy and prayed softly that things worked out. He wasn’t sure that he could handle another loss. They were getting too frequent in this new damaged world.

~*~z~*~

The trio was blessed with excellent directions from Zella. Being a delivery girl, she was good at remembering routes to places. They got to the facility with little to no trouble. 

Jake parked the truck in the shadow of some trees and the three climbed out. They grabbed their weapons out from behind their seats and stared up at the facility. It was a lonely building, eerie. It reminded Jake a bit of the military bunkers that his grandfather used to tell him stories about but with more of a research lab entrance. 

It was an odd choice.

“Well, that looks cozy.” Bill commented a bit snarkily and he shifted his weight uneasily. He held his shotgun under his arm as he fixed his gloves more securely. He was starting to lose the feeling in his fingers from the cold.

“Welcoming or not, we need to head inside.” Jake pulled his hood down more securely around his face while the other two readied themselves. He looked over and it seemed like neither Bill or Stanley really wanted to do this.

Bill huffed softly, uneased by the sight of his own breath. He shook his head and bounced on his toes to warm himself. He could see Jake make the sign to follow him and quickly fell in line behind his friend. Bill felt a little more secure having Stanley bring up the rear.

The lack of structural damage around the building’s entrance spoke of how crazed and panicky citizens had not found this place. This was a relief and a concern as Jake pointed out tire treads in the grass off to the side of the facility. Jake made a motion to stop and the other two crowded up close to him.

“Should we leave?” Bill inquired softly in a nervous whisper. His gaze shifted to the tire tracks to the door then back to Jake. Surprisingly, it was Stanley who answered him.

“Bill, we can’t. We wasted too much of the town’s gas just getting here.” The farmer replied, sounding a bit defeated.

“Stanley’s right.” Jake gritted his chattering teeth and rubbed his arms to try to create some warmth, “This was a gamble and we can’t lose. We’ve used up too many supplies getting here. Going back empty handed helps no one. If there’s something to get here then we need to find it. We’ll just have to play it safe. We don’t want to rile up whoever may be here.”

Bill did not like the sound of this plan but he trusted his friends’ judgment. He knew in his heart that they were right. If they wasted the town’s supplies for nothing, it would haunt Bill forever.

“Stay down and follow my lead.” Jake commanded as he cast a glance back at his companions. He was checking to make sure that they were ready as he stalked up to the door. He nodded to his friends before slowly pulling the door open. He was glad there were no alarms. The last thing he wanted to do was alert people.

Bill felt a bit queasy as they headed in. Still, as soon as he stepped in, a soft whimper of pleasure escaped him as warm air touched his chilled face. The heater in this facility was on and it was possibly the most wonderful thing that Bill had experienced since the beginning of winter. He had never been so thankful to be warm in all his life.

“God, that feels so good.” He whispered, hugging himself. He looked at his two friends, who were just as shocked as he was at how amazing it was to be warm. He smiled at then tiredly, he could tell that they wanted to just lay down and sleep in the warmth as much as he did.

Bill couldn’t remember the last time he actually felt warm, even while sleeping in his own bed. God, how he wanted to just curl up in a corner and sleep in the warmth, just for a tiny bit. Would it be too much to ask for ten minutes in a corner to finally rest properly?

“C’mon, Bill, we gotta go.” Stanley urged softly, looking kindly at his exhausted friend. It was easier to stay warm when you had someone to share your bed with but Bill had no one at home, “You can take a nap on the way out. Sorry.”

Bill sighed softly and nodded. His shoulders drooped slightly but he took a calming breath. He knew that this really wasn’t the time for a nap.

“You’re right. I’m all set.” Bill smiled tiredly at his friends. Jake nodded and Stanley gently patted Bill on the back. The three got back into formation and Jake led the way to the first door. 

~*~z~*~

Amber eyes snapped open. The rings of gold were thin and tight around heavily dilated pupils. The eyes stared into the dark void of the room. A strange sound like a rumbling snarl gurgled up in the man’s throat. He flexed his fingers, skin stiff and sticky from the drying substance on them.

He slowly sat up from his position sprawled on his bed. Little entered his mind as he stood, growling as he stepped off the bed. His bare foot stepped into a puddle of cool congealing liquid but he took no notice. There was a light from coming from the front of his room that held his attention. 

His door was open.

~*~z~*~

The trio hadn’t gone twenty feet past the first door before getting stopped by another. This one was secured by an automatic lock needing a key card. The very sight of it made Bill’s chest constrict. From what he knew, only very important and potentially dangerous things were kept behind doors like that.

Just what kind of facility was this place?

“We need to find the key.” Jake whispered as he looked about. He smirked as he spotted a security booth down the hall to the left and string of closets and offices to the right.

“Stanley, take Bill and check in those offices. I’ll check out the security booth.” Jake’s command was strong and confident. He patted his pistol to tell his friends to be ready for anything. 

The duo nodded and readied their weapons. Stanley loaded shells into his shotgun while Bill grabbed his service pistol. The two quietly checked in with each other before nodding once more to Jake. With that, the party broke into two.

Training and a sense of duty took over for Bill. He took lead now that it was just the two of them. He would have felt like he had done his friend a grave injustice by forcing him to go first. As a deputy, it was Bill’s duty to make sure that civilians came first. Even if said civilian was a fellow Jericho Ranger.

The two crouched low as the slowly crept into the first office that they came to. They were glad to find it empty. Since this building had both heat and light, it was making their scouting mission a great deal easier. The two would have felt a great deal more on edge if their expedition were cast in shadow.

The tension eased from their shoulders and they took a breath. Bill looked up at Stanley and smiled. He took off his bag and held it in his arms, “Alright. I think we should each take a side and search. If that card’s here, we’ll find it.”

“Sounds good. I’ll take the right, you take the left.” Stanley agreed, looking about the room to get his bearings.

The walls of the rooms were filled with progress charts, time sheets, and various lists of what looked like symptoms. In the middle of the room consisted of six L-shaped desks set up in pairs. They were covered in piles of papers and folders.

“What kind of work did they do here?” Bill asked softly, curious as he looked about. He started moving towards his half of the room.

“Nothing good, I’m sure.” Stanley’s voice was low and cautious. He was always known for his optimism but the things he saw on the walls made him feel scared for the safety of himself and his friends. Because if something happened to him, who would take care of Bonnie?

“We’ll make it back to her.” Bill said adamantly to reassure his friend. He, like the rest of the town, knew that Stanley constantly worried about Bonnie. It was a big farm for just her to run on her own after all.

“Yeah. I know.” Stanley had a good deal of faith. He used that faith to keep his spirits up in this new world. Bill really admired that. Bill always wished that he could be more like the farmer. Since the bombs, Bill’s faith in humanity had been replaced by fear. So much fear.

Bill was skittish and xenophobic now. He hated anyone new from outside Jericho, he didn’t trust them. They only brought pain and harm to his home. People from the outside were dangerous.

Bill’s hand shakily went to the necklace around his neck. He clutched the slender gold bands that hung from it. His eyes misted gently with bitter pain as memories of his sweet Hyacinth flowed. The realization too sharp that he would never again hold her against him in a sweet embrace.

He choked back a constricted sound of distress at the memories. He clenched his eyes shut and shook his head, desperate to chase the memories of loss away. Never would he trust another stranger.

He opened his eyes and tried to take a relaxing breath. He looked about for Stanley and was grateful to find that he had not seen any of that. He hated to worry people, and he worried everyone after that fateful home invasion.

He sniffled softly and wiped his nose with a trembling hand. He blinked rapidly to stave off tears as he walked to the furthest desk. He gasped softly and tiredly dropped to his knees. He stared at the drawers of the desk for a long moment before finally reaching for one.

He flinched as he pulled it and it made a clattering metal sound but didn’t open. He sighed softly in frustration. Why was nothing easy!? It was just never easy!

Bill sat there, wide-eyed, as the room echoed with the sound of him violently hitting the drawer. His body went stiff and fear flowed through him, making his stomach twist. Off to his side, Stanley’s head popped up.

“You okay?” Came the simple words of love and concern. His tender gaze drifted over to Bill, watching with sweet worry.

“Yeh-yeah, I’m okay, Stanley.” Bill whispered shakily, staring down at his trembling hands. He felt so very stupid. What was he doing?! Trying to get him and his friends killed?! What if someone had heard?!

“Okay. Just, uhm, call if you need any help.” His friend offered kindly before going back to checking the cupboards. Sorrow welled in Stanley as he tried to ignore Bill. He knew that Bill was still in pain. Losing a piece of family, that pain never left.

Both men went about their ways to look for the keycard some more. Bill grimaced and ducked his head down again. He took a breath and placed his bag on the ground in front of him. He quietly took the zipper and opened the bag. He reached into the inner pocket on the inner back wall, pulling out his lockpicks.

He huffed softly and began to work his lockpick into the drawer’s lock. Normally, he would be a little ashamed of the fact that he knew how to use a lockpick but he had learned a lot from Jake since they were kids. He had always felt that he would eventually need the skills that he learned from his friend. He trusted Jake with his life, especially in this dark new world.

He placed the lockpick on the carpet and slowly slid the drawer open. He was extremely relieved that it didn’t make the sound of metal on metal like earlier. His relief quickly turned to excitement and he let out a gasp at what he discovered in the depths of the drawer.

He couldn’t fight the thrilled flutter in his chest as his gaze landed on what looked to be protein bars. There must have been at least twenty or so of the individual bars. They were all wrapped and still before the expiration date. 

They were perfect!

Bill was extremely hungry, everyone in Jericho was. These small scraps of food looked like tiny slices of Heaven to him. He took a moment before hastily grabbing one and unwrapping it. He quickly ate two of the bars before realizing what he had done. His mouth was full before he stopped himself, feeling selfish and greedy.

He sat back on his ankles and sighed pitifully. He used a hand to gently wipe the crumbs from his mouth, shaking his head. His cheeks were stuffed with chewed protein bar but he quickly finished chewing and choked down the thick mess.

He hung his head, disappointed in himself. What would Mrs. Green think of him if she saw him greedily stuffing his own face? There were children in Jericho who needed these bars more than he did. Children who needed protein and fat to survive the cold winter.

He wiped his hands on his uniform pants and shook his head. He determinedly held his hunger in check to keep from eating more. Once his nerve and conviction settled, he opened his bag once more. He reached into the drawer and carefully gathered up the bars, putting them in the bag without breaking them.

Once they were stashed away, he made another hunt through the drawer. He was looking for the key again but could not find it. He was growing increasingly frustrated with the lack of results of the search. He finally gave a sigh and stood up, giving up the fruitless expedition.

He reached down and grabbed his bag off the floor. He made sure it was zipped up before hitching it over his shoulder. Once it was settled, he started to check the rest of the desks in his half of the room. None of their drawers were locked and held nothing of importance.

Though, in one of the drawers, Bill found a pair of golden-looking scissors sitting on a case file. He didn’t think anything of them at first and was going to leave them. But they were so pretty and shiny, very clean as if they had been scrubbed clean. He reached into the drawer, grabbing them up.

He put them in his bag for some reason. 

He wasn’t sure what could possibly use them for. But they were too nice to leave. Maybe Jimmy’s wife could use them around the house.

“Hey, find anything?” He called softly as he headed back to Stanley. The farmer gave a strange little depressed pout and shook his head. The two looked at each other tiredly but Stanley’s eyes were tender as he caught Bill’s tired gaze, giving Bill a little shrug. Bill watched him a moment before smiling.

“Hey, wait.” The excited whisper escaped the deputy suddenly. He quickly pulled his bag over to his front and unzipped it, “I got something. Not the key, but something.” 

He reached into the open bag and pulled out two of the protein bars. He held them out proudly to his dear friend. His eyes shimmered with soft excitement at Stanley’s little look of surprise, “Here. I found these. I already had a couple, these are for you.”

Stanley blinked at the gift, shocked. The last thing he had expected was food. He was sure that whoever was surviving here would have hoarded all the food. Still, he was extremely thankful to be wrong. He was a lot hungrier than he liked to think about.

“Thanks, Bill.” He whimpered gratefully in reply as he took the bars. He put one in his coat pocket before starting to open the other bar’s packaging, “Maybe Jake’s having more luck.” He took a bite of the bar and made a sound of interest. The bar tasted amazing, so much better than he had expected. As he chewed, he smiled brightly at Bill, getting one in return. 

It was nice to relax a moment and just eat. There was never time to just sit and eat these days.

“Sounds good.” Bill replied as he raised his head to look about the room. There weren’t any other areas of significance in the room that he could make out. It was looking like they wouldn’t be finding the key card here. It was most likely for the best that they get moving. 

The quiet and heat of the room were starting to make both men sleepy. They hated to admit it but they weren’t used to being so warm, it was distracting. It made them feel safe and tired. None of them had slept soundly since the bombs. They were each kept up for various reasons concerning the protection of their loved ones.

Unfortunately, they could not simply sit and rest there in the warmth. Stanley pocketed the second protein bar to eat at a later time. Bill zipped up his bag and buckled it before slinging it over his shoulder. He looked up at the farmer to silently express that he was set to go. Stanley smiled and turned to lead, heading for the door with Bill quick on his heels.

~*~z~*~

The warm corridor felt so much longer now. They looked about to make sure that there were still no Ravenwood members lurking about. It only took a few moments to discover that they were alone and that it was safe to proceed.

The duo walked down the hall towards the side where the guardroom was. They found it with ease and stepped through the doorless entrance. They looked about in surprise when they discovered the room was a lot larger than it had originally appeared from the door. Still, they didn’t dwell on it and began to look around for their friend. The larger size of the room made it a tad difficult to locate Jake without calling out to him. They eventually found him in a small supply closet off to the back side of the room.

Bill smiled and waved as Jake popped his head out of the closest to see who they were. He had heard their footsteps well before they entered the guardroom but he had held his position. He relaxed immediately upon seeing that it was his two companions. He nodded to them and smiled before returning his attention to the closet. The two newcomers could hear Jake rummaging through something in the darkness of the small room as they neared.

“Did you find the keycard?” Bill asked softly as the duo finally arrived beside Jake. The area around the closet was a bit cramped with desks and electrical control equipment. This forced Stanley to stay back a bit in the more open area with the desks while Bill stood in the closet’s doorway. He peered into the shadowed area to spy on what Jake was doing. He raised his eyebrows as he watched. Jake was crouched on the floor, sifting through several types of items poured out on the floor.

“Yep. I got it.” Jake nodded to his friend, raising a hand and offering the keycard to Bill to hold, “Let’s see what else we can use in this junk. Never know what we’ll need.”

Bill smirked at the sight of the card and quickly snatched it up. He carefully put the card in the breast pocket of his uniform shirt. He then crouched down beside Jake and looked around his shoulder, “Have you found anything else we can use?”

“That depends.” Jake grunted, passing a pistol over to Bill, who stashed it away carefully for later use, “I found that earlier. There’s a few other odds and ends here that’re of use as well.” He bit his lip and took a breath. He gathered up a few scattered items and some rounds for the pistol. 

“Guys, we need to make this run but we really cannot let our guards down.” He said cautiously as he stood. He frowned as he straightened out his clothes and turned to look at his friends. His gaze shifted past them to the monitors at the far left of the security room. The screens were all digital windows into what was happening beyond the locked keycard door.

“What’s wrong, Jake?” Bill inquired warily as he turned to follow his friend’s line of vision. There was a tightness in his chest and he didn’t like that he couldn’t identify it. He could tell from Jake’s body language that something was bothering him, something was wrong. Jake had been out in the world and had seen more than Bill and Stanley combined. Bill knew to trust his companion’s judgement on situations. If Jake said something wasn’t safe then it meant that things were not safe.

“Since I’ve been in this room, there has been no activity on those monitors.” The raven-haired member of the group replied softly, keeping his voice lower than usual. He gently guided Bill to look at the specific monitors he was speaking of, “We know that there’s people here. Ravenwood at the very least. Yet, the monitors that have feed of the inner facility show nothing. That’s just not natural.”

Bill hadn’t thought of it that way. Though, now that the matter had been brought to his attention, there was something suspicious about zero activity on the security feed. Where was everyone? What exactly laid beyond the confines of the security doors? Was it even safe going in there?!

“So, what should we do then?” Stanley asked a tad incredulously, “leave?” The farmer shifted his weight while fidgeting with his weapon. He was trying to hide his discomfort with the situation. He didn’t want his worries to spread to Bill, who seemed to suffer from severe anxiety since the assault and kidnapping back when this apocalypse had all begun.

“We can’t.” Bill urged gently, shifting the strap of his bag so it sat better on his shoulder, “People are getting sick. This is the only nearby town left. We don’t have more options. We need to get supplies because the winter’s only getting colder.”

“Exactly.” Jake buckled his own bag close and slung it over his shoulder. He squeezed past Bill and headed over to the room’s exit. As he walked, he passed the internal monitors he had mentioned earlier. A frown crawled its way onto his face and Bill instantly picked up on it.

The deputy took note of the sour expression before turning to look up at Stanley, sharing an anxious look with him. It took a moment but the two quickly followed after Jake. Bill was already a wreck and Stanley could see it, so the farmer made sure that he was alway behind Bill. Bill was incredibly grateful because Stanley was the only thing keeping him from looking over his shoulder constantly. This entire facility was setting Bill on edge and it was really starting to show.

Jake pulled his pistol out of his bag and walked towards the area where the security door was. He looked over at his friends and gave a nod to come join him. He didn’t smile, not allowing a false sense of security to manifest. That could get them all killed.

“Jake, do you know where we’re even going?” Stanley asked cautiously as Jake was about to slide the keycard. This facility could be larger than it looked and that had a high probability of them all getting lost. They couldn’t really run the risk of getting lost with Ravenwood running around in the halls.

“Yeah. Here.” Jake grabbed something from the inner breast pocket of his coat. It was a folded paper map of the facility. He held it out to his two companions, “I grabbed this off one of the tables in the guard room.”

“Good find.” Bill grabbed the map from his friend and started to carefully unfold it. He held his arms apart so that the map would be fully spread out. Behind him, his two companions crowded in to easily look over his shoulders. Their closeness took his mind off his worries and let him focus on the map with them.

“So, which way we heading, Jake?” Bill frowned as his gaze drifted over the map. There were so many rooms and corridors. It actually took a bit for him to discover where they were at the entrance.

“The facility’s infirmary is over here.” Jake informed them as he reached around Bill to point off to the right side of the map. The room they were looking for was down a few curves and possibly down a flight of stairs. It looked like it could be a difficult path if they had to avoid or hide from the Ravenwood soldiers.

“Looks like this could possibly be an issue.” Bill warned as he used his nose to motion to a door marked in the middle of the right corridor. The door was blocking the main access to the infirmary. If it was locked it could hinder their path severely.

“Do you guys see a way around it?” He inquired softly, squinting at the lines that made up all the hallways and doors. He didn’t like how far away from the security door the infirmary was. There seemed to be a long expanse of the corridor they knew nothing about. There were several rooms to either side and no knowledge if they were locked or not.

“No. Looks pretty secure.” Jake grumbled softly. From past experience, he didn’t like it when there weren’t alternate escape routes.

“Wait!” Stanley easily reached around Jake and over Bill’s arm to point at the third door to the right in the main corridor after the security door, “what about this room? Is that something?”

Bill and Jake looked closely as Bill brought the map nearer to them. They turned their attention to the room in question as Bill spoke up, confusion tinting his voice, “Is that a door in the back of the room?”

The three blinked as Jake investigated the map a bit more. His eyebrows quirked slightly and he gave a small nod. The map didn’t have much detail but that seemed to be a handwritten note.

“Looks like it could be. We should mark it as a secondary route.” Jake pulled a pen out of his pocket. He began to draw their path on the map, careful not to puncture the paper. A tear in their only map was the last thing that they really needed right now.

“Alright. Let’s get going. The sooner we get home, the better.” Bill grumbled as Jake finished drawing the backup path on the map. Behind Bill, Jake and Stanley shared a concerned look at Bill’s tone. They knew that when Bill started acting like this, it meant his anxiety was starting to get the best of him.

With a silent look of agreement passing between the trio, Jake headed back to the security door. Bill took a shaky breath and squared his shoulders. As Jake carefully unlocked the door with the keycard, Bill busied himself with folding the map. He got it down to a manageable size while still having their route showing. 

There was a series of quick beeps and the clicking of locks as Jake slid the keycard into the electronic lock. The trio could hear the door unlock and it left them all feeling oddly unsettled. But they knew it was too late to turn back now.

Bill moved forward and grabbed the handle to the large door. He watched his companions ready their weapons. Once they were set, Bill carefully opened the door. The well taken care of state of the facility made it so the door opened with minimal noise. 

He watched Jake take point, leading the group down the stairs beyond the door. Bill moved and slipped back into the safety of the spot between his two friends. He dragged in a shaky breath and held his pistol at the ready. Not trusting his anxiety levels with his friends’ safety, Bill kept the pistol’s safety on to avoid accidents that he would regret dearly. He stayed close behind Jake as the pilot headed down the flight of stairs, steps light and stealthy.

Jake had always been a jack of all trades but the improvements to his skills were almost frightening now. Bill still didn’t know much about his friend’s life away from Jericho and that made him sad. The three of them had been friends since they were kids and yet Jake didn’t feel safe enough to talk to them about it. Could it really have been that bad?

Bill shook his head to chase away the wandering thoughts. He didn’t have time to be worrying about Jake’s past. They would eventually reach that level of friendship again. For now, he just had to focus on them all staying alive long enough for that to happen.

The flight of stairs had about twenty steps. Its decent felt like an eternity for the uneasy trio as they continued down. A light above them flickered softly, making Bill frown. He found himself wanting to turn back but couldn’t seem to make himself do it. So, he kept his eyes on Jake’s shoulders in front of him. 

Over the years as a deputy, Bill had learned that you could tell a lot from a person’s shoulders. Right now he saw caution in the tightness of Jake’s shoulders. Not fear per se, it was more of a trained readiness. Preparedness for the likelihood of the situation turning bad. Bill trusted Jake to sense when things were about to go bad, his friend seemed familiar with those kinds of situations.

The staircase ended and left them in the middle of a long hallway. All along the opposite wall were room doors. The white walls of the facility were no longer such a soft color. They were tinged grey by smears and traces of grime. The lights were slightly dim, making their vision a bit murky.

Jake stopped at the landing but Bill and Stanley tried to walk past him. He quickly reached out and grabbed them by the sleeves. They looked back at him and he shook his head. He gave them the signal to be quiet. The realization of what they were there for was almost instant. This dim light and many doors could mean that one or more of them could get lost. 

The trio started on their way once more. Even though Jake was at point, Bill was the guiding force. In the hallway’s dim light, Bill held the map out and was softly guiding them down the right-side of the corridor. The hallways felt much longer than it looked on the map. Bill could have sworn that for every one door on the map, there was two doors in real life.

Whoever had created this map was either lazy or had other plans in mind when they created it.

The Jericho trio kept walking along the path until they neared the corner of the corridor. Jake froze in place, stopping the other two in their tracks. Stanley reached over Bill’s shoulder to tap on Jake’s. When his friend looked back at him, Stanley gave him an expression that asked why they had stopped. A look of concern covered Jake’s face and he mouthed the word “Ravenwood” to his companion.

The raven-haired member of the group pointed around the corner. There were traces of blood and gunshots on the wall behind the corridor. This evidence put Jake on alert while sending anxiety through the other two. Bill was about to ask a question when the group heard gruff talking from beyond the next security door around the corner.

The Ravenwood members were probably coming their way and fast. Without knowing the size of the group, they couldn’t risk getting caught out in the open like this. They needed to hide and quickly. Bill moved to the closest door in the hallway and tried the handle. It was locked but that didn’t mean much to the group. Jake tossed his lockpicks over to Bill and the deputy quickly made short work of the lock.

The door opened the slightest squeak, not nearly enough to alert anyone beyond the security door around the bend. Bill stepped into the room and out of the path, letting Stanley and Jake follow him in. They closed the door behind them and locked it once more. Bill was going to turn on the light in the room but Jake already had his hand on the switch. He was blocking it from being flicked on.

“What are you doing? We can’t see anything.” Bill whispered a bit frantically. He flinched slightly when something touched him but relaxed when he realized it was Jake.

“Exactly. If we can’t see anything, that means they won’t see any light under the door. If there’s no light under the door, they’re less likely to look in here.” Jake explained softly, squeezing Bill’s shoulder reassuringly, “We just have to wait them out.”

“Jake’s right. The less we do to draw attention to  ourselves, the better.” Stanley offered and moved to sit against the wall. He reached up and gently pulled Bill down since he seemed frozen. Stanley wrapped comforting arms around his friend, just like when they were kids. Jake moved to sit beside them.

“I wish we knew what time it was.” Bill said after a bit, “I’m tired.”

“Well, it was already starting to get pretty late when we arrived and that was hours ago.” Stanley supplied softly, “It’s probably well into night by now.”

“You two should get some sleep.” Jake whispered as he shifted a bit closer to the door. He moved away from his companions so he could focus on the door. He pressed his ear to the cold metal and hissed softly at the contrast to his skin. He was glad the heater was still on in this part of the facility. How good were the generators here? They had to be well stocked.

Would it be right to take some of that gas for Jericho? 

“Hey.” Bill called softly as he crawled off Stanley’s lap. He moved over to Jake and snuggled into his side. He smiled softly and took off his bag. He held it in his lap and quietly opened it, pulling out one of the protein bars. He held it and gently smacked his hand against Jake’s chest. “Here, eat this. You gotta be hungry by now too.”

“What is it?” Jake asked curiously, unable to see the item in the dark. He brought his hand to his chest and took the item from his friend’s hand. He was surprised to feel the foil under his fingertips.

“Protein bar.”

“Yeah. Bill found a bunch of them when we were searching for the keycard earlier.” Stanley moved over as well. He pressed up against Bill’s opposite side, making sure that Bill felt that he was between him and Jake.

“Thanks, Bill.” Jake’s smile could be heard in his soft whisper. He started to unwrap the bar and settled back against the door. Beside him, Bill stiffened in fear upon hearing the mercenaries roaming the corridor beyond their room.

“Get some sleep.” Jake suggested softly, leaning close to his friend, “I’ll take watch.”

Bill had to admit he was exhausted. Everything about their new world was exhausting, especially survival. The chance for a nap sounded nice. He was sure that he’d finally be able to get some rest now that they were residing in a heated facility.

So, he snuggled into his friend’s side and felt Stanley pressed against his other side. He gave a small yawn and closed his eyes. It made little difference in the already mostly pitch room. Still, it felt natural and helped ease him to sleep. He needed rest to deal with what might come later if they ended up in a shootout with the mercenaries. 

~*~z~*~

Bare feet stepped over cold filthy ground. Disorientated and lost, a lone figure wandered the halls of the facility. A trembling hand trailed along the wall stained in blood, smearing the substance like ink. He whimpered softly, suffering from his confusion. A deep growl rumbled in his throat as he passed by a fellow patient, baring his teeth.

The other in the hall cowered away, scratching at his own arm and muttering under his breath. The two parted ways, going towards different halves of the hallway. The first patient continued to wander aimlessly. He flinched slightly as a voice suddenly called out to him.

“Griff?” The voice was soft and feminine, tinged by fear. The sound sent chills down Griff’s spine and anger flared in his chest. His mind was too distorted to fully comprehend what he was feeling or why. Still, the emotional response that she instilled in him had him turning on her. A sound of anger escaped him and she let out a cry of surprise. There was the sound of heels clacking against the hard floor as she ran, leading him to give chase.

Within moments, there was a barrier between the two. A door made of solid metal stopped him from getting at her. He didn’t know why he was angry at her but the anger and betrayal were hidden there, twisting inside and curdling his calm into something putrid. He snarled and yelled, slapping his palm viciously against the thick hide of the door.

Griff snarled angrily and gave the door one last slam with both hands. It did not budge and the ex-FBI agent simply sagged to the floor, exhausted. He muttered softly, short nails dragging pathetically at the metal door. His prey was locked away inside and he was unable to hunt it. So, he let his mind wander as he stood up, making his way down the hall once more.

~*~z~*~

Bill had learned a lot of things in this new America. One was that it was an honor to be able to sleep in a location where you were warm and had no fear of winter’s deathly touch. The second was that it was a blessing to be allowed to sleep beside another human being. A rare blessing that should be treasured because it will be gone one day.

He missed the feeling of having another pressed up against him. When he was a child, he used to snuggle between his two best friends. When he grew up, he felt the loneliness of sharing a bed with no one until he was married. He cherished every second that he had his love beside him. But alas, one day that pleasure disappeared too when the world turned to radioactive ash.

Sleeping beside his friends once more reminded him of those innocent childhood days where every day wasn’t a desperate battle for survival. He felt more rested here in the warmth than he had since the bombs fell. It was almost as if America wasn’t an isolated wasteland for a few short hours.

He awoke sometime later, feeling surprisingly refreshed. He shifted out of his cramped position and stretched his arms out forwards, spine arching. He blinked a few times in the dark, the only light coming from under the door. He cocked his head to the side and just stared at it for several moments.

Beside him, Bill could hear the level breathing of his two friends. He froze for a few moments, just thinking. He was unsure what to do as a foolish idea entered his mind. Could he really act so rashly? The idea was so blatantly stupid but it would save time in the future!

Jake and Stanley needed to keep resting. Jake rarely slept since he had returned to Jericho. Everyone could see this truth in how disheveled the man looked with each passing day. Jake had risen to become a leader figure under the mayors of Jericho and all the citizens trusted him with their lives. That responsibility, mixed with whatever nightmares he kept hidden, made sure that he didn’t rest. Stanley’s rest was barely any better considering he had to take care of the farm, Mimi, and Bonnie.

This was the reason that Bill felt the urge to let them sleep. They would be safe in this room if he locked the door before leaving. They could sleep until they had enough energy to continue on. In the meantime, Bill could go out ahead. He could open the security door for them to get to the infirmary easier. 

The plan sounded firm in theory.

Bill shut his eyes and drew in a trembling breath. His fists clenched and it took him a moment before opening them once more. He felt around for his bag at his feet and eventually found it by the texture against his fingertips. He grabbed it and pulled it to his chest before he crawled over Jake to sit in front of the door. He sat his bag on the floor and hunched over it, feeling for the zipper.

He finally found it and unzipped it as quietly as he could. He reached his hand inside the medium-sized bag in the front and rummaged around. He let out a breath of satisfaction upon finding his flashlight. He clicked the small device on and held it in his teeth, using the beam to light up the contents of the bag’s main compartment.

He reached in and grabbed his notepad along with a pen. He laid them on the tile floor  then clicked off his flashlight before putting it into back into his bag. He leaned down, using the light under the door to write a message on  the notepad. The message was vaguely detailed with his plan to take the alternate path in order to open the security doors from the other side. He told them to meet him in the infirmary when they woke up.

Once he was done, he stashed the remaining supplies back into the bag. He zipped up and slung it across his shoulders. He drew in a slow breath to settle his rattled nerves before standing. He swallowed and clenched his hands into fists before opening them again to reach for the door. He made sure that Jake wasn’t sleeping against the door before slowly opening it.

The dim light of the hall was too much strain on his poor eyes after spending hours in that dark room. It took him a moment to adjust until he was able to step out of the room. He reached back into the room and twisted the lock on the inside then was careful to quietly close and lock the door, not wanting to wake his friends or alert his enemies.

Bill looked down the left side of the hallway and counted the doors he saw there. There were six before hitting the midway point. He stealthily moved to a section of the hall that was more shrouded in shadow to hide himself before pulling out his map and taking a pen out of his pocket. He crouched down and laid his map out to look over his path.

On the map, there was only three doors before the midway point. This meant that the door he was looking for was either room 5 or 6. With that in mind, Bill drew a basic version of his route on the palm of his left hand. He scooped up the map again and folded it before returning to the storeroom where he left the others. He crouches down and slips the map through the crack under the door so that the others can use it. All he needs is the crude drawing on his hand.

With that out of the way, he looked both ways and listened for anyone coming. He could hear some weird sounds from down the corridor but nothing close. He slowly removed his service pistol from its holster and started on his way down the hallway. He can see the rooms he’s searching for from here and prays no one sees him walk towards them.

~*~z~*~

A woman in a lab coat stained with smears of blood startled awake from her fitful sleep. She’s visibly shaken as she sits on a swivel chair watching the monitors before her. She feels trapped, unsure if she’s facing reality or a violent flashback.

But, this can’t be happening again, right?

The resounding thuds from someone pounding on the door behind her had returned. A chill traveled down her spine as she heard his incoherent screams and drug-slurred words. He somehow sounds so much more violent than the first time in the prison.

How had he of all people devolved into such a monster?!

She had tried treating him, experimented on him. If only she could fix him then she could ensure her daughter’s freedom. But no, he had resisted, had almost exposed her! She had to drug him, had to fry his mind so he wouldn’t babble and expose her. 

It had worked! 

She had succeeded in almost completely destroying the speech center of his brain. He could only utter broken sentences but that was only occasionally, on the norm his speech was mostly slurred gibberish or completely non-verbal jerks of his body.

She had no inclination that forcibly removing this aspect of his humanity would cause the other aspects to deteriorate as well. He had gotten worse and worse until he became almost animalistic. 

He was no longer that sweet and depressed FBI agent she had met those years ago.

~*~z~*~

Getting to the two rooms was the easy part. When Bill arrived, both doors were locked. He was able to pull his lockpicks out of his bag and unlock the door to room 5. Though, as soon as he stepped into the room, he wanted to step right back out. His nerves were set on edge and he felt sick.

There was blood and grime on the walls as well as the floor. There was bodies littering the floor, as if they had no meaning as human beings. They were torn and mauled but the damage didn’t look like that of an animal attack. Whatever had happened, it resulted in the stuff of nightmares.

Hand pressed to his belly to calm the nausea, Bill turned to escape back into the safety of the corridor. His plan was stopped before it even started as he heard footsteps and voices beyond the room’s door. The voices were unfamiliar, meaning that they were not Jake or Stanley. This truth caused panic to course through Bill’s frazzled nerves. 

He did not want to be captured or maimed before he had the chance to help his friends. He was going to survive this little encounter and live to open that door for his friends. They needed to get to the infirmary and get the meds. Bill refused to let Ravenwood get in their way.

He could hear a pair of men speaking beyond the room’s door. They were checking the rooms on this side of the corridor which meant they would be entering his room soon He couldn’t afford to get caught right now.

Bill looked around for a place to hide and wasn’t finding any sources of refuge. In the end, he did notice one but was not exactly pleased about it. Still, it was the only option that he had at his disposal. He quickly hurried over to the scene of gore at the back of the room.

He frowned as he went around and got on the floor. He felt bile in his throat as his stomach twisted in disgust as he rolled onto his back, to get the gore stains on his uniform. It felt disgusting and wrong but it might just save his life. He couldn’t let himself be caught when others were counting on him.

He forced himself to settle on the floor and play dead. He did not have to wait long for his efforts to be rewarded as within minutes he heard the room’s door open. He could remember playing dead with Jake and Stanley when they were all young, he drew on his play knowledge to help him now. It wasn’t very hard to pretend when your life was on the line.

“God, what a mess.” One of the mercenaries hissed in disgust at the sight before him. The man had done some horrific things in his past but this was a scene he was unprepared for. The damage to the bodies was horrific in pattern and violence.

“It has to be the aftermath of those sick freaks.” The second man whispered in agreement. The image before them was sick on several levels. From tacky puddles of blood to scattered bodies that had been mutilated, the room was just tainted with gore.

The man’s words grabbed Bill’s attention and curiosity. Who was the man talking about? Had the people running this facility been the terrible people who had murdered all these victims? But, if that was true, then why did so many of the people look like staff?

There were so many questions and zero ways to get answers without revealing himself. There was no way he could take on two bloodthirsty mercenaries by himself. He had to keep playing dead at this point. He was better off being clueless than being dead.

“There’s too many of those guys in the inner halls. I’m beginning to feel like the supplies here just aren’t worth getting mauled over.”

“Don’t let the boss hear you say that. It doesn’t matter how many there are, we’re gonna have to find the generator room eventually and bleed this place dry.”

“I don’t care. The boss hasn’t even been heard from in hours! It’s like those nutjobs are possessed, the way they just tear into each other once you provoke them.”

Bill’s stomach twisted uncomfortably as he listened to the two men talk and rummage through the room. He couldn’t help feeling panicky as he heard their footsteps neared, he had to resist the urge to clench his fingers in fear. He anxiety was making him nauseous and not even the sound of them moving away was enough to calm his rattled nerves.

His mind was so frazzled that he barely registered them expressing their desire to get te hell out of there. They left with a click of the door closing, leaving Bill stranded in the darkness of the room.

He couldn’t believe it. His foolish ploy had worked and he was sure that it was only because the mercenaries were so distracted. Whatever was happening in this facility was enough to frighten Ravenwood soldiers. That alone was enough to put Bill’s frayed nerves even more on edge.

The sooner that the Jericho team got out of this place, the better for everyone. But the hardest part seemed to pulling off this little heist. It there was people here that could frighten cold-blooded mercenaries, then Bill had much to fear.

The deputy slowly got to his hands and knees, feeling a bit stiff as he escaped the congealing pool of blood he had been lying in. He fought the nausea boiling in his belly and ignored the urge to dust himself off. He didn’t really feel like smearing more blood into his poor uniform. As it was, he felt like a character in one of those stupid horror movies that Jake loved so much.

Bill looked about the room in the vague dark. There was a bit of lighting from various instruments in the room. Whoever had worked in this facility apparently had an EMP shield because every electronic device in this building still seemed to functined. Why was this facility so important?

Bill walked closer to one of the glowing instruments and lifted his hand. The light washed over his palm, exposing the map he had drawn. His hand trembled slightly but he worked to ignore that. He looked over the note about the door in the back. He hoped that it was this room and not the next. He wasn’t sure that he could unlock the other door without getting caught.

He took a deep breath and lowered his hand to his side. Guided by the weak light in the room, he made his way towards the back of the room. He gritted his teeth to ignore the sticky pools between his shoes as he walked. The stench of blood and death was making him lose his battle with his stomach. This room was hellish and Bill hated it.

With luck, he didn’t trip in the gore beneath his feet. This allowed him to reach the back of the room with relative ease. Still, it did little to lessen the smell from the front of the room. He did his best to hide his nose under the collar of his shirt but it did little to help. He was forced to keep suffering through as he began searching for the door.

From what he could see, the back wall over the room was covered in desks and bookcases. What exactly had this room been that it was full of books yet they dumped a pile of bodies into it? Either way, he supposed that it wasn’t worth worrying about. He just had to find that stupid door and get the job done.

The light in the room wasn’t enough to see in the shadows at the back of the room. He decided to combat this blindness with simply feeling around behind the bookshelves and desks. Too many things could go wrong if he worked on pulling out the flashlight in his bag. With the size of the small beam he doubted it would be much help anyways.

That mindset in place, he began to reach over the desks and grope at the back wall. As he slowly moved, he kept his hearing trained on the door. He wanted to make sure that he could hear them before they heard him. He couldn’t afford to get caught.

His trembling fingers slowly trailed along the cold wall, searching for a difference in the smooth texture. He started on the far right and headed towards the left. He was honestly shocked that he found the door fairly quickly. The strange thing was that it was in the middle of the wall, instead of on a side.

Bill blinked out of sheer confusion at the placement of the door but got over his shock quickly. He felt around as his his struggled to adjust to all the darkness. He frowned when he discovered a bookshelf in front of the door. With a grunt of contempt, he started to clear out the books. He stacked them into piles atop of the desk beside the bookshelf.

The work was going quicker than he suspected. Perhaps it was his fright spurring him on. If he didn’t get ths security door open before the others woke then he started all of this for nothing. He risked almost getting caught, that was only worth the stress if he made it.

Bill didn’t realize he had cleared all the books until he grabbed for one and got only air. He blinked a few times and frowned. He ignored his stupidity for a second and grabbed the wall of the bookshelf. He began to carefully pull the bookcase towards himself. He cringed at the metallic scraping sound it made against the floor, it was setting his nerves even more on edge.

Maybe it wasn’t as solid metal as he believed or maybe his adrenaline was too high because the shelf moved with ease. The base shrieked as it dragged against the hard floor but it was over quickly. Bill made sure his bag was secure on his shoulders before grasping the handle of the metal door. He gave it a turn and was confused to find it unlocked.

What was the point of a secret door if you weren’t going to lock it?

He shook the thought from his mind and pulled the door open fully. The space beyond it was pitch and that frightened him. He drew a trembling breath then stepped into the dark and closed the door behind him. He heard it fall shut with a click and felt his unease build.

To avoid the jarring feeling of having his eyes opening but only seeing black, he clenched his eyes shut to reassure himself that they were closed. He wanted to open them on instinct but refused. Instead, he crouched down and removed his bag.  He rummaged blindly through the main pocket of the bag, sifting through the various items until he touched his flashlight.

He pulled out the light and flicked it on. He frowned, finding himself in a cramped corridor. It was dark and filthy, dust and cobwebs cluttered the cold metal walls. It was eerie and unsettling. He decided to hurry along and find the next room.

But before he took his first step, a strange idea struck him. He turned around and faced the door he had just come through. He used the flashlight to check along the edges of the door, looking for the possibility of a light switch. His search was soon rewards with a switch oddly towards the bottom of the door’s right side. He reached down and flipped it on, surprised when dim lights actually flickered to life with an eerie green tinge.

A shudder drifted through Bill as he looked about. Who would make a secret corridor with green lights and why? There was no reason for this when there was perfectly normal corridors to use in the facility. Had someone in the facility been doing something illegal and didn’t want the others to know? Was that the point of this corridor?

He shook his head and turned around again. He shook off a tiny shudder at just the sight of the thin walkway. He shook his head and raised his hand again. This place hadn’t been on the map at all. That fact confused him and scared him a bit. What were the people here doing? They saw nothing in the office or the security room to really explain anything.

He could remember a whiteboard with different symptoms on it so it had to be something medical. So, was it a research facility or a hospital? What did the symptoms mean? The hell had happened here before the bombs?

He trembled slightly and he did his best to ignore it as he noticed something on the wall down the hall a bit. It was a clipboard with a map scrawled on it. It centered around the hallway that Bill was currently in and branched off into little rooms along the sides. He found it strange because it didn’t branch into every room, only certain ones.

The rooms were numbered and some of them then had names scribbled next to them. He found the room number that he had written onto his hand earlier but there was no name next to the room. There was only the word “mistake” was scrawled beside it.

Bill found that he didn’t really appreciate such a cryptic message. It made him unsettled but he also realized that it was the room closest to the the security door. Whatever was in that room or connected to it would have to be dealt when he came to it.

Unlike the main map had said, the door to the other room was not directly across. According to the map on the clipboard, it was about twenty feet down the hall to the left of his current position. He carefully replaced the clipboard onto its hook on the wall before starting to walk towards the door.

He was starting to get used to the lighting in the corridor but it was still an odd choice. He was just glad to be getting away from it as he found the door. He tried the handle and was actually surprised that this one was locked. Why lock one way into this corridor but not the other. Whoever was running this place couldn’t seem to make up their mind on the matter.

Still, the lock was on his side of the door so that was easily remedied. He steeled himself as he turned the handle once more and grimaced as it creaked open. The concept was down right ridiculous to him. Who in their right mind would let a door in such a nice facility get creaky. This entire situation was ludacris to him. 

The door opened wide, shining the green light and illuminating the room beyond. Bill gritted his teeth at the mess on the floor. There was a massive puddle of blood splattered across the middle of the room. Blood streaked the walls and the sheets of the bed. There was what looked like an orderly lying slumped in the congealing puddle. A trail of bloody bare footprints leading out the open door. Bill felt chill run through himself as he took in the scene.

This was another clue that he and his friends had stepped into a situation far worse than they originally suspected. Whatever this was, Bill knew they had to get out as soon as possible. This was proof that they were in a medical facility of some time and that there was someone dangerous here besides Ravenwood.

It was obvious that the patient of this room had walked out through that open door. That pointed to the orderly not being killed by one of the mercenaries. They wouldn’t have shown pity on a patient while killing someone else in the same room. Not to mention, the attack looked almost animalistic with a close range weapon rather than gunfire.

Bill snapped his flashlight back on and crouched down, turning off the light in the secret corridor. He quietly stepped into the patient room and closed the door behind him. He gritted his teeth and strode forth through the puddle towards the room’s main door.

He had a job to do.

~*~z~*~

Tired bare feet roamed the cold floor. Dazed amber eyes drifted tiredly, understanding nothing they saw. A maelstrom of emotions tied knots in a fractured mind. Blood caked on blunt fingernails and trembling hands. A throat, dry from thirst, keened in unending discomfort.

Bloody hands ached and throbbed from beating against solid metal. Knuckles and palms torn and bruised from the bombardment. Now all that was left was a hollow shell of exhausted frustration. Tired and down-beaten, the lonesome figure sank to his knees on the filthy ground. He looked to the side and gazed upon a fallen man dressed in a utility vest.

Dazed amber eyes focused on the body a moment before closing and ignoring the sight. He paid it no mind and instead wallowed in his hunger and thirst.

~*~z~*~

For Bill, getting out of the room was the easiest part. Once he set foot in the hall, things shifted slightly. This particular hallway was empty but also the lights were dimmer. If this was the hallway that led to the security door then at least he had that going for him. Still, he didn’t like the look of a secondary security door in his way.

He took a shaky breath and slowly drew his pistol. Whoever was in this half of the facility was not safe and that meant that he had to be on his guard. He couldn’t afford to get caught after being so careful all this time.

He started down the hall to the right. He would hit the first security door and if that was unlocked then he could his primary target. The door that would get Jake and Stanley into the infirmary.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Bill knew that this door would be locked but he had to check. It didn’t feel right not checking. In the very least, he wasn’t surprised when he did find that it was locked tightly. Though, he found himself profoundly glad as his blood turned to ice at the sounds beyond the metal door. 

He could hear a clatter of items hitting the floor. There was a shriek of anger as well as a yowl of pain, both sounding almost inhuman. There was the obvious sounds of scraping and fighting. Whatever was happening beyond that door, he prayed that it was gone by the time he went around.

He swallowed thickly around his fear and turned from the door. It felt wrong to turn his back to an obvious danger but it needed to happen because he had to keep moving. He knew logically that nothing human could get through that door, no matter how much it wanted to.

Danger spiced the air as he walked back up the hall where he had come from. He knew there was a longer path to get to target location, he had seen it earlier on the map and noticed that this section of the building went in a square.

He just needed to make it there with hopefully no trouble. He honestly doubted that would work but he had to try. He let his feet guide him down the path of the hall as he kept a look out for Ravenwood or the patients.

He walked to the end of the hall and turned right, heading deeper into facility. He was glad not to see anyone despite the trail of bloody footprints on the floor. He was glad to see them veer off to the left to what looked like another hallway.

Still, even with the footprints leading off, Bill noticed something strange about them. One of the feet had a bit of a drag to the print, as if the person walking was limping or dragging their food because their leg hurt. Despite himself, Bill found himself hoping they weren’t in too much pain.

The thoughts took too much of Bill’s attention and he wasn’t watching his own path. He didn’t here the woosh of door being opened quickly by hand, all he noticed was another body slamming against his. Both fell to the facility’s hard floor with a groan as Bill’s gun hit the floor with a clatter.

“Oh god, I am so sorry!” A female voice apologized on reflex in a loud whisper.

Bill groaned softly from the discomfort of hitting the cold floor, feeling a bit dazed. He turned his head to the side to a blond woman slowly sitting up. She seemed alright and that made him feel a bit better about the strange situation.

He looked her over and noticed the lab coat she wore. Whoever she was, she had obviously been one of the doctors in this place. But a doctor of what? What did they do in this place that required the facility to be underground. Sure, that’s probably what saved it but still.

“Let me help you.” He replied softly as he stood. He moved closer to her and offered his hand to her. She moved to take his hand but froze as she looked up. The fear in her eyes turned his blood to ice.

“Gr-griff?!” She choked out in shock, her breath strangling in her throat, eyes never looking away from his face. She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think. All she could see was the last person that she wanted to come face to face with.

“Ma’am? My name’s Deputy Bill Koehler.” He gently grasped her hand, “Are you alright, Ma’am?” Her reaction was starting to disturb him a bit. Whoever she believed him to be seemed to have broken her spirit in that instant.

The woman blinked rapidly at his words. She drew in a quaking breath and slowly let her eyes roam over his body. She swallowed thickly, throat tight with fear. The tension slowly started to ease from her as she took in the deputy’s uniform that he wore. She relaxed more but still felt tense for other reasons. What was a deputy doing here after the bombs?

“Ma’am, are you alright?” Bill urged again, growing increasingly worried about her. He doubted she was a threat judging by how much she was freezing up in this conversation. If she was trapped here and not a threat then it was his duty to see her out of this place.

“I… I’m sorry. You just reminded me of someone I used to know.” She replied shakily, covering her face with her hand for a moment. She took a breath to settle herself before looking up at him with an uneasy smile. “I’ll be alright. Thank you, Deputy.” Finding her nerve, she allowed him to pull her to her feet.

“My name’s Dana.” She paused for a moment, considering just how much she should tell him. 

“Pleasure to me you.” Bill greeted kindly as he stepped towards his gun and crouched to pick it up. “What are you doing in this place, Dana? Are you hurt?”

“No, I’m alright. Just a bit frightened.” Considering his position as law enforcement, perhaps he would not be welcome to the horrors she had done in this place. She would need to alter what facts she told him otherwise he may abandon her. She wouldn’t survive an actual run-in with Griff or some of the more violent patients without someone’s help. “I used to work here. I had only transferred in about a day or two before the bombs fell.”

“Oh. I’m so sorry but at least you were safe here.” Bill looked at her sympathetically, a kindness and worry in his eye that was familiar. It made her sneer internally as she was filled with a chill. How could he be so similar to Griff?

“Yes, I managed to move into the living area here with my daughter. Some of the other doctors and the orderlies were helping to keep the patients alive.” She explained as she began to dust off her dress.

“Orderlies?” Bill frowned softly as he straightened out his own clothes. He grimaced softly, remembering the bloody room that he had come through to get to this half of the facility. Whatever had happened, it had not been gone well. “I found two rooms with dead bodies in them.” 

He started to walk down the hallway again, his back turned to her. He missed how she stiffened as the mention of the room insinuated that he had gone through the hallway. This man wasn’t Griff but she was starting to believe that he was just as nosy.

“Yes. They died, killed by the more violent patients, and we had to store them in one of the room because this facility doesn’t have a morgue.” Dana quickly filled him in. She hoped that was the end of his questioning. She wanted to know more about him before she spilled any more information on this place.

“I’m sorry to hear that your co-workers passed away.” Bill looked back at her, more sympathy in his golden eyes. He was disturbed by the fact that the patients had committed the murders but at least it hadn’t been the other doctors and orderlies tuning on each other. As he looked at the woman’s face, he saw only the weakest hint of emotion. It was a bit creepy but perhaps she just didn’t show emotions well.

“Thank you for your kindness.” She forced a smile of gratitude but it somehow felt fake to both of them. There was something about the woman that was rather off putting but Bill was struggling to see if it was her or his own distrust of non-Jericho people. “So, what brings you to our research facility?”

“My town is in dire need of medication.” Bill explained as he squinted in the dreary light of the hallway. It felt so much longer than it looked on the map. He was sure that he was going the right way though. The shape of this building only had so many paths through it. “We were told about this facility and came here for supplies. We had no idea that it still had people in it.”

“So, there are others with you?” Dana’s skin prickled with unease. She still had research to conduct here, she couldn’t have some bumbling deputy and his stupid friends ruining her plans. She would find the means to make her daughter appear normal then they could escape this hell.

“Just two. We could only afford the three of us to come.” Bill turned back to smiled sweetly at her. “You said you have a daughter here with you? You two should come back with us.” If felt like the right thing to do to invite her along. The woman didn’t seem like the strongest and that meant she could be hurt easily in this new world. She obviously hadn’t left this place so she didn’t know what the world was like beyond these walls.

Dana on the other hand was not particularly fond of his offer. There was no place in the outside world for her child right now. That required more study, more hard for work to mask what her child really was. She wasn’t going to let some idiot deputy get in her way.

“So, Dana, what exactly did you do at this facility? It sure was well prepared.”

“We had to be cut off from society for the safety of everyone.” She started slowly as he gaze drifted along the hallway. Her eyes drift down, spotting bloody footprints that had dried to the cold ground. “We were a research facility and asylum for the criminally insane.”

Bill stiffened a bit in fear. He supposed that answered a lot of questions about all the dead people in the facility. That didn’t bode well for anyone if the cause of those deaths was because the patients got lose. “Then it’s definitely not safe for you and your daughter to stay here”

“Yes. It could be a risk to have those unwanted walking around free. I need to watch out for my daughter’s wellbeing.” Dana nodded as they turned the corridor. She smiled softly at him and pointed off to the left side of the hall that they had just turned into. About twenty feet ahead was a hallway. “Deputy, the infirmary is just down that way.”

“Really?” Bill blinked in confusion as they continued walking. He bit his lip as he tried to remember the exact position of the infirmary on the map. He hadn’t had room on his hand to draw the entire path. “I was sure the map in the security room said it was off to the right.”

“It used to be.” Dana walked a bit closer to Bill as she looked about cautiously. After the patients had beaten back and killed the orderies on this side of the facility, they had been roaming free. They couldn’t be trusted and couple be oddly stealthy. “We had to change its location in order to save power in the facility. That way we could turn off certain sections without them all going down.”

“Oh. That makes a lot of sense actually.” Bill pointed at the left-hand turn that they were coming up on. “This way, correct?”

“Yup. That’s the one.” She smiled sweetly at the kindly deputy as they walked to the corner. She stayed close behind him, keeping him in arm’s reach at all time.

Bill looked on in surprise to see that the turn was indeed an open pair of security doors. His steps slowed as something did not feel quite right about the situation. He stumbled forward as a sudden shove to the back knocked him off balance. He fell to his knees on the hard ground beyond the reach of the security door.

“I apologize, Deputy...” Dana said a bit coldly. Bill turned to face her, meeting her determined gaze as she hit the button on the wall at her side. The security doors snapped shut before Bill could climb back to his feet. “...But I cannot allow you to steal my supplies and interfere with my research. What I am doing here is vital for survival.”

“Dana, wait!” Bill slapped his hand against the reinforced window in the door. He glared, gritting his teeth and glaring at her with hatred burning hot. “I was trying to help you!”

“You have nothing to offer me.” The woman glared and shakily stepped away from the door. She smiled wryly as she eased Bill’s pistol into the pocket of her lab coat. Bill stared in horror as his hand went to its holster as he watched the woman take off down the remaining path.

“Dana, come back!”

~*~z~*~

The sound of closing doors echoed through the empty halls. A figure huddled in a corner looked up as he heard the sound. He frowned softly and slowly stood on shaky legs, trying to force his hazy mind to think. His lip grew back into a weak sneer as he turned his ear to the direction that the sound had originated.

Somewhere deep in that melted mind was someone who had lurking knowledge. He knew what this sound meant and who linked to it. He knew that only that woman from his tarnished nightmares was capable of causing such a disrupting sound.

Anger flared within his chest at the distant memory of that woman. He could not put a name or face to her figure but knew she was responsible for his pain. He refused to have that woman running loose in these halls. She was far more dangerous than he or the others could ever think to be.

~*~z~*~

The clack of heels slapping against the hard floor resounded through the halls. Dana paid no attention to blood-splattered walls or skum-ridden floors. She rushed through the facility, unhindered by the monsters lurking along the halls. She knew that the sounds of her movement would call forth the violence of the patients.

She smirked coldly as she saw the main security door that led from this section to the first section of the facility. The gun in her pocket weighed heavier with metal than guilt as she pushed forward. She held no contempt for the deputy and yet felt nothing about leaving him at the mercy of murderers.

Triumph rushed through her soul as she reached her goal. She used her high level keycard to unlock the door before throwing them open without caution. It would not be long before the patients seeped from their shadows to prey on those left in the safer areas of the facility. 

They would never find Dana or her child in the dreary reaches of the inner paths.

As the doors swung open towards her, her eyes widened. Two men holding a map stood on the other side, blocking her path. Anxiety and unease unfurled within her spirit as she watched them slowly look at her. The blond man blinked in confusion but the raven-haired one looked on with cold calculation.

Dana let out a gasp as realization hit her. These must be the deputy’s two friends, they were here to also ruin her plans. But they were nothing but more fodder for the violent delusions of the patients that roamed these halls. She would not let three men ruin all her research.

“Uh, Hi there.” Stanley was the first to speak as the door opened to reveal a frazzled looking woman in a labcoat. 

“Hello.” Dana greeted kindly in return. She turned her features soft and innocent, playing innocent. She believed the blond to be a fool but the other seemed more hostile and naturally on guard. She needed to escape these two quickly. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re looking for medical supplies and a friend of ours, Ma’am.” The raven-haired man informed her quietly. His dark eyes kept shifting around, obviously searching for danger.

“I’m sorry. I haven’t seen your friend.” Dana smiled kindly at them and motioned to the hall behind her. “Our infirmary is down this hall. It’s easy to spot. You can’t miss it. I know the world out there is harsh now, so please take what you need.” She nodded to them and confidently started to walk past them.

She had gone about two feet beyond them when Jake turned towards her. Stanley gave him a confused look but Jake paid him no mind. His eye was instead trained on the strange weight disturbance in her coat. 

“What’s wrong with your coat?” Jake asked with honest curiosity. Dana stiffened at the question and that put Jake on alert. Before he or Stanley could even register what was happening, Dana had pulled Bill’s pistol on them. Both men raised their own weapons in retaliation.

“Where did you get that gun?” Jake was starting to feel hostile but he didn’t want to start a shootout if he didn’t have to. There was a chance that this woman had met Bill but it did seem unlikely. He needed answers.

“I found it fallen in one of the corridors.” Dana replied, never taking wide eyes off of Jake. She seemed to think little of Stanley. She had looked into the eyes of criminals many times and the blond farmer definitely wasn’t one.

“You know, I don’t believe you.” Jake glared at her as he judged her conviction to fight. He slowly took a step towards her and saw her hand shake. That was a bit of a concern, nervous people could quickly go either the way or violence of surrender.

“It doesn’t matter what you believe. I have patients to attend to!” Dana took a step back. Jake watched her every movement but sensed no urge to fight coming from her. What did surprise him though was to see her fling the gun at him.

The next set of events was strange and quick. Jake reached out to grab the pistol as it flew through the air. The woman turned tail and quickly ran around the corner. Stanley followed her but before he turned the corner, they could already hear a door slam. She had slipped into one of the many rooms in the long hallway.

They had a choice. They could chase after her, which seemed like a waste of time. Or they could search for Bill. In a place like this with the threat of Ravenwood lurking, there was a possibility that Bill had been attack after wandering off. 

“Stanley, c’mon, we gotta look for Bill.” Jake flicked the safety on Bill’s pistol before putting it in his own bag. He turned towards the security doors that the woman had just opened. “She came from here so that means he’s this way for sure. We need to find him before he makes another bad choice.”

“Maybe he made it to the infirmary.” Stanley offered as he walked back to his friend. He cast a glance backwards but tried not to worry.

“I doubt it.” Jake started towards the open security doors. He grimaced in unease as he looked about. The walls in this section of the facility looked like they belonged in a horror movie. There was weird drag marks and strange smudges that looked like blood.

Jake didn’t like any of the implications that this pointed to.

“Stanley.”

“Yeah?”

“I think we need to split up.” 

“What?!” The farmer looked at his friend like he was insane. Splitting up sounded like the worst possible idea in this situation. What if one or more of them didn’t make it back to the entrance. Who knew what kind of situations they would end up in.

“I need to find Bill and you need to get those supplies.” Jake looked at his companion sternly. He took the map out of the mesh pocket of his backpack and held it out towards Stanley. He took a deep breath, settling his anxiety. “Once we pass this door, there’s a hall that veers to the right. Take the map and head that way, I’ll take the straight path to look for Bill. Got it?”

“Yeah. I got it.” Stanley took the map and gave a firm nod, still not trusting the plan.

~*~z~*~

Everything had happened so quickly around Bill. After Dana had betrayed him, he was still shaken by it as he  called out to her. He was confused, not understanding why she had done this. Why wouldn’t she want to be rescued from this tomb?

That thought didn’t linger long as he suddenly heard laughter behind him. He gritted his teeth, knowing the slightly crazed laughter of a criminal when he heard it. He turned around and came face to face with three of the patients Dana spoke about. Two were babbling on about the devil walking the earth while the third eyed Bill’s bag.

In the end, he was lucky that they weren’t all there mentally otherwise they may have killed him. Instead they had wanted his bag, they were like deranged magpies. But he couldn’t let them have the bag because it held his share of the supplies. They couldn’t afford to lose any to criminals.

Bill had fought them and lost. He was lucky that they still weren’t interested in killing him. They had just wanted his bag after all. Looking for a bible?

So, now here he was. Face bruised and bleeding from a lost battle of three on one. He was crumpled to the floor in a dark room, exhausted and defeated. He was biding his time for escape. It would come in time and he just had to wait. He watched them scatter his belongs all across the floor of the small room as they looked for their prize. He was immediately glad they didn’t eat what little food he had hoarded in his bag.

He just had to wait to escape.

~*~z~*~

Sounds of anger, sounds of violence, drew him closer. Blood-stained feet padded along cold ground as he followed. Golden amber of his eyes dark and dull from hunger. Ache of loneliness everlasting clawed at his chest. Would their blood bathing his hands sooth his fragile spirit.

In the end, did it really matter?

He bared his teeth as he drew closer to the room. To the side of him, his dead brother haunted the hall and mocked him. He did not pay the deadman any heed, didn’t even hear him. Only the promise of violence, freedom, called to him.

Shuffling like a zombie, body exhausted and worn, he made it to the room. The taste for violence, fueled by his hatred for the others, boiled in his blood. He only flinched a second as they spoke of devils and demons. 

Off to the side of the room by the door he was at, a gleam of gold caught his eyes. His eyes slowly widened as he looked down in awe at the sparkle. His breath caught in his throat as he crouched to the floor, reaching for that familial object.

“Hello darkness…” The song lyrics slipped from his lips as his bruised and bloody fingers closed around the pair of golden scissors. “...my old friend.”

~*~z~*~

Bill’s freedom came with a shimmer of light and a gurgling scream of anguish.

He felt dazed and his vision wasn’t great in the dim room but he could see something had gone wrong. His eyes widened as he slowly adjusted to the scene before him. His stomach turned and yet he felt relieved. He watched in fascination as something gold shimmered when it caught the light before each stab.

Metal ripped through flesh and blood soiled already filthy skin. The slaughter in the shadows continued until there was only one person standing in the middle of the room. From his corner, beaten and bruised, Bill whimpered in fear.

Nothing had provoked the other and suddenly the patients were dead. So, what exactly was saving Bill. His body ached and he wasn’t sure he could fight again. His heart pounded with fear as those bare feet squelched through pooling blood, walking towards him. Trembling, he looked up as the figure stopped before him. Only to freeze and gasp at what he saw.

His own face was gazing down at him.

Well, not exactly his face. It was a few years older, tired and blood-splattered. Amber eyes were dark and listless. Yet, the longer he looked, the less that he was afraid.

“G-griff?” The name slipped from his lips unbidden as his logical mind took over. It was the name that Dana had called when she believe he was someone else. This person, this tortured patient in the filthy hospital gown, must have been the owner of that feared name.

The dim look of recognition in the tired eyes was answer enough. It gave Bill hope and a bit of courage, though he couldn’t tell well. He was less and less afraid with each second Griff did not move to kill him.

“Y-you’re Griff, right?” Those staring eyes sluggishly blinked in reply. Bill smiled softly but didn’t move from his spot on the floor. Those cursed golden scissors still hung from Griff’s finger tips, blood gliding down the blades.

“Good, that’s good.” Bill was floundering a bit. How did you ask someone who was criminally insane not to kill you? “I.. I’m Bill. Nice to meet you, Griff.” The lack of response was back and that scared Bill. Still, he knew had to get this over with, had to know this encounter’s result already. 

“Shh…. It’s okay, not going to hurt you.” He cooed softly as he shifted towards Griff. He kept eye contact with him while slowly reaching for the scissors. He was slow and precise. Despite jokes, he had actually paid attention to his police training and had taken the disarming lessons to heart.

His hand went to Griff’s and slowly closed over it. He was gentle and non-threatening, careful. His heart pounded with fear and sadness as the other man obediently relinquished the golden weapon. Soon, the scissors, bloody and tarnished, were in Bill’s gasp as the fight fled Griff’s dull eyes.

Bill shoved the scissors across the hard floor while still locking gazes with Griff. His heart ached as he saw so light, no happiness or emotion in those pained eyes. Bill wanted to help, needed to help.

“Shh… It’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you, Griff.” Bill reassured as he slowly stood, hands comfortingly stroking up Griff’s arms. He took it as a good sign that the other didn’t move to attack him. He had no idea why after what had just happened but he didn’t question it.

An ally was an ally.

“Griff, I’m… I’m going to gather up my stuff.” Bill swallowed tightly and looked about the shadowy room. The contents of his bag were everywhere. Most of the items were splattered in the blood of the fallen.

He smiled sweetly and patted the other man’s arm. He pulled away and was about to gather his things when Griff’s stomach made his hunger known. Bill couldn’t help but chuckle at this and smile. “Griff, are you hungry?”

The dazed amber eyes stared into his soul a moment before Griff finally gave a slight nod.

“Well, uhm, just wait there a second.” Bill hurried to the front of the room and flipped the second switch on the wall. An extra set of lights flickered on and he was finally able to see the room properly. He tried to ignore the dead bodies as he looked around.

His gaze fell on the little packets of foil and he rushed over to scoop up the protein bars. He grabbed three and began to unwrap one as he walked back to Griff. He smiled softly and held out the treat to his new companion.

Griff stared at the food bar for a long moment before sluggishly reaching for it. He could vaguely remember eating protein bars in his previous life before he had become this shell of a human. He had always taken them with him on long cases to keep up his energy.

“Th-... Thank you.” He whispered, voice dry and hoarse from yelling and screaming through the past week.

“You’re welcome.” Bill found himself smiling brightly as the other man slowly ate. A strange joy bubbled up in him and he wasn’t sure why. He pushed it to the back his mind and handed two more bars to Griff. That taken care of, he began to gather up his fallen items and return them to his bag.

Griff was unbothered by Bill’s movement around the room. Though, after he finished his snack, he walked to the side of the room and gathered up his scissors once more. He slipped them into the pocket of his filthy hospital gown. That taken care of, he began to follow Bill around the room like a lost puppy.

“Well, that should be everything.” Bill murmured as he closed up his bag. He looked about, uneasy. God, what had the world turned into? It was awful.

“Hey, Griff.” He hesitantly reached for the taller man’s hand and gently took it. He needed a question of his to be answered. “Have you seen any guys from Ravenwood here? They’ll, uhm, have been mean looking. Probably wearing vests and carrying large guns.”

Griff just stared at him in reply. He blinked once before starting to lead Bill by their linked hands. The deputy followed him without resistance, wondering where they were going. Griff led the way down a part of the corridor to another storage room. Bill could only look on in horror as he stood at the open down.

Before him lay the bodies of eight dead Ravenwood mercenaries. The wounds they had were awkwardly placed and he imagined that it was from the patients ganging up on them for the attack. Still, it was gruesome and made him uneasy.

“Did you do this?” He asked softly and Griff shook his head no in reply. “Good, I want you to not be like the patients that beat me.”

Bill’s face ached. He had cuts and bruises on his face from the abuse. His body felt sore and he knew he was blessed that they hadn’t killed him. Maybe they were going to do it after they had raided his bag. But, he supposed it didn’t matter now.

He gently tugged on Griff’s hand, urging him away from the room. “Let’s go, Griff. We need to find my friends.” He smiled at his doppelganger. “We’ll take you somewhere safe. I promise.”

He didn’t understand why Griff trusted him, perhaps because they looked similar, but all that mattered was that the trust was there. He used that trust lead his new companion had to guide him. He headed back towards the door where Dana had betrayed him.

It did not take them long to get to that part of the corridor. He could see it and it left him feeling shaken because the doors were now open. Who had opened them?

“Bill!” The sudden sound of Jake’s voice alerted him. He looked to the side and smiled at his friend waving. He stopped, feeling uneasy upon feeling Griff’s grip on his hand stiffen. He turned to his new companion and smiled gently, “It’s alright, Griff. This is my friend, Jake. He’ll protect us.”

“Bill, thank god.” Jake hurried over to them but was wary of Griff. He didn’t know what was going on in this place but none of it was good when it all added up. The fact that Bill was roughed up and this guy was covered in blood did not sit well with Jake.

He crowded in close to his friend, leaning in to whisper to him. “Are you okay? This guy hurt you?”

Bill chuckled softly and shook his head. “I’m fine, Jake. This is Griff.” Bill smiled sweetly and pulled his double close. “He rescued me from some of the other patients that attacked me.”

“The patients?” Jake frowned, still more confused about everything happening in this facility. “That would explain the strange doctor we ran into. She had your gun.”

“Dana,” Bill grunted bitterly, his free hand clenching. “She left me to be mauled by some of her insane patients.”

“She was rambling on about us ruining things for here earlier.” Jake looked over at Griff, who had gone stiff. “Hey. You okay, man?” His words caught Bill’s attention, who turned to Griff.

“Griff, what’s wrong?” Bill tenderly rubbed his double’s arm, trying to soothe him. “She can’t hurt you anymore.”

Bill turned back to Jake, unhappy and worried. “I don’t know what she’s done but she’s done something. That woman’s crazy, Jake. We need to get out of here.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice.”

“Where’s Stanley?”

“Infirmary. He’s getting the supplies we need.” Jake nodded his head towards Griff. “We taking him with us?”

“He saved my life, Jake. I can’t leave him here.”

“That’s fair. But we’re low on food as it is. You’ll have to share your rations with him.”

“I have no one else to share them with now.” Bill replied brokenly, eyes downcast.

Pain shot through Jake’s heart at that. He wanted to comfort his friend but wasn’t sure how so he decided to move things along. “Let’s get out of here, Bill. We don’t want to get caught by Ravenwood.”

“That won’t be a problem.”

“What?”

“They’re dead, Jake. At least eight of them.” Bill shifted closer to Griff. “The other patients got to them. We should leave before there get us too.” The only reply he got was a nod. Jake handed back his service pistol before leading the way back to the infirmary.

~*~z~*~

In the end, they met up with Stanley and got the medical supplies they needed. They tried to leave but Griff dragged Bill off to the kitchens. There was a massive store of canned and smoked foods stored there. Almost more than their truck would be able to handle. They also found gasoline for the generators.

They ended up leading up Stanley’s truck and stealing the Ravenwood vehicle as well once it was full of supplies. There the team felt more secure in the victory of this supply run. By saving Bill and leading them to the supplies, Griff had earned his place in Jericho citizenship.

Still, the trio decided to hide Griff at Bill’s house for a while first. Bill showing up with a doppleganger at a town meeting might be a bit too much for people. It was best to let everyone settle in with the new supplies first.

So, Bill happily took Griff home.

~*~z~*~

“Home sweet home!” Bill proclaimed excitedly as he gently led Griff into his home. Luckily at the facility, they had found some extra clothes for Griff to wear. They were a bit big but they were warm.

Bill led him into the living room and sat him on the couch. The deputy moved to the fireplace and started a fire. His home had gotten cold while he was away and he wanted Griff to be comfortable.

“It’ll get something to clean you up once it warms up a bit.” Bill informed him as he sat beside his guest. He smiled softly and pulled a homemade quilt over them. “Warm enough?”

Griff blinked and nodded, a broken smile appearing on his face. He sighed softly and curled into Bill’s side. His hand trembled from medication withdrawal as he moved it to link fingers with Bill.

The deputy blushed softly but didn’t pull away. It was so nice to have someone snuggled against him once more. Sitting with Griff like this helped to ease the horrible ache in his chest.

“Th-thank you.. f...or saving me.” The words were slow and hesitant but heartfelt as they left Griff’s lips. Bill could only stare in shock, honestly surprised that Griff could speak so well. In all honesty, it had taken all of  Griff’s cognitive energy just to say it and Bill appreciated it.

“You saved me, Silly.” Bill replied with a laugh but Griff just shook his head.

The ex-FBI agent smiled tiredly and squeezed Bill’s hand. With a sigh, he leaned in and pressed a shy kiss to the deputy’s lips. Bill’s eyes opened wide but he didn’t pull away, too stunned. Or at least only at first. Very soon the shy kiss began to feel right and Bill happily returned it with a shy one of his own.

After all, the end of the world was a time for new beginnings.

~*~End~*~

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to point out where they're out of character. Everyone's all over the map in this fic...


End file.
